Hands On With Kim Dotcom’s New Mega

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So what’s to stop Mega from going down just the way Megaupload did? Mega’s privacy, which is a no-foolin’ stroke of genius. See, all of your files are encrypted locally before they’re uploaded, so Mega has no idea what anything is. It could be family photos or work documents, or an entire discography of your favorite band. Poof: online and easy to share. And importantly, Mega doesn’t have the decryption key necessary to get in. See? It’s a masterstroke of copyright subversion.

via Hands On With Kim Dotcom’s New Mega: This Service Could Dismantle Copyright Forever.

Technically you should be able to do this with any cloud storage service.  The key here is that the encryption is done locally.  There are many ways to encrypt your stuff locally so why would it matter which cloud storage provider you use?  Maybe I’m missing something but this doesn’t seem all that novel of an idea other than perhaps the new Mega provides the software and user interface to make the entire process easier.  Mega is supposed to launch tomorrow so more information will surface.

Pirate Party Battles LEGO Over Copyright and Trademark Injunction

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The timeless plastic bricks of LEGO can be built into predetermined items such as a car or house but can also be formed into any shape, the options limited only by the creativeness of its builder. However, turn LEGO bricks into a controversial item and the company’s lawyers could soon be breathing down your neck.

via Pirate Party Battles LEGO Over Copyright and Trademark Injunction | TorrentFreak.

This is happening in Czechoslovakia.  It amazes me at how creative companies get  over claims of ownership.

Facebook Messenger app change allows free calls via WiFi

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Using software, rather than hardware, the latest update of Facebook’s Messenger app now lets U.S. users place voice calls over WiFi. The rollout follows reports of Facebook testing voice call features in Canada earlier this month.

via Facebook Messenger app change allows free calls via WiFi – The Washington Post.

You might want to be careful about this after reading this article on slashdot:

Facebook Lets You Harvest Account Phone Numbers

KeePass Password Safe

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KeePass is a free open source password manager, which helps you to manage your passwords in a secure way. You can put all your passwords in one database, which is locked with one master key or a key file. So you only have to remember one single master password or select the key file to unlock the whole database. The databases are encrypted using the best and most secure encryption algorithms currently known (AES and Twofish). For more information, see the features page.

via KeePass Password Safe.

I haven’t tried this yet.  Using something like this requires a complete paradigm shift as to how one uses the web.  I currently have a password system in my head that has worked for quite some time.  It will be interesting how useful this is in real life use cases.  Having the ability to have some other entity remember usernames and passwords can lead to very secure authentication.  There will be no way to  authenticate however if one does not have contact to this password database which could be a problem.

Inside NASA’s Deal for Inflatable Space Station Room

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The new inflatable BEAM will be launched to the International Space Station by a Falcon 9 rocket built by another private spaceflight company, California-based SpaceX. The module will be cocooned inside the unpressurized cargo hold of SpaceX’s Dragon capsule atop the Falcon 9. NASA has already purchased the launch of the SpaceX Falcon under a separate Commercial Resupply Services contract.

via Inside NASA’s Deal for Inflatable Space Station Room.

This site is always fascinated with the technology of space.  Here’s an interesting tour of the International Space Station.

Fedora 18 released

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This document provides the release notes for Fedora 18. It describes major changes offered in the Spherical Cow as compared to Fedora 17. For a detailed listing of all changes, refer to the Fedora Technical Notes.

via Release Notes.

The Gnome2 fork MATE is supposedly integrated with this release.  After reading the comments on slashdot I’m not keen on upgrading and will stick to FC14 or if another MATE release becomes available that supports system monitor.  System monitor is so important for security and general maintenance of the system and yet most consumer devices don’t include it.  System monitor is equivalent to the temperature guage in your car.  You want to know if the engine is overheating just like you want to know if your computer is causing unexpected traffic on the network.

Instagram Loses Half Its Daily Users In A Month, And Here’s Why

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According to data provided by app traffic company AppStats, Instagram has lost more than half of all its active users in the month since proposing to change its original Privacy Policy and Terms of Service. In mid-December, Instagram boasted about 16.3 million daily active users; as of Jan. 14, Instagram only has about 7.6 million daily users.

via Instagram Loses Half Its Daily Users In A Month, And Here’s Why [REPORT].

Funny stuff from xkcd.

Attack Code, Metasploit Module Released For Serious Ruby On Rails Bugs

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This just got (more) real: Researchers today unleashed exploit code for a pair of newly found vulnerabilities in the popular Web application programming platform Ruby on Rails (RoR), as well as a new Metasploit module for the most serious of the two flaws, raising concerns of potentially damaging attacks to come on Web servers and databases.

via Attack Code, Metasploit Module Released For Serious Ruby On Rails Bugs – Dark Reading.

Security experts recommend patching RoR apps now if you have not already done so. Said O’Donnell in a blog post yesterday: